All my Ex-Lovers are Dead, Theatre Next Performance: Friday 3 July 16:00 Review and interview By Rosa-Karoo Loewe I watched All My Ex-Lovers Are Dead while in the fiery hell of a new, romantic obsession. Though not drowning in a teacup nor yearning to profess my love to a person I have just met, there’s something about this kind of heat, that writer, director and performer Dara Beth ruminates on. They compare the warmth of “good-for-you’” love to setting yourself on fire. Cause like, passion is hot. And what if your crush is super hot too? The show which is running in the Spark Hub…
Author: Mbali Tanana
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Light and Darkness, Theatre for Children Venue: Glennie Hall Review By Mbali Tanana Terrifying sounds of a rumbling drum and a clever play with lighting kickstarted the intriguing production of Light and Darkness, embodying the fear that is often associated with darkness. Performers randomly dancing slowly across a dimly lit stage clad in black cloaks appeared to represent bats that dance through the night – that certainly gave me goosebumps! The message was evident: darkness can be scary and sometimes, so is everything that it represents. However, there was a moment where we were reminded of the beauty of the…
By Mbali Tanana Growing up in the dusty streets of Joza Township from a very young age Siphiwo Mahala would entrap himself between pages and escape into a world of books where he found solace — his first glimpse into literature and the arts. Today, the Makhanda homeboy — who was recently appointed as the board chairman of the National Arts Festival after five years serving as a board member– said the new role was humbling and a great honour. “When I was asked by Elinor Sisulu to serve on the NAF board in 2019 I saw it as an…
By Mbali Tanana After seven years of research and finally completing her book in 2021 with an intimate, Covid-19 book launch, Makhanda-born Mignonne Breier says she is delighted to be bringing her book Bloody Sunday to the Literature Festival that takes place at the National Art Festival this week. The three-day Literature Festival is hosted by the Eastern Cape Department of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture from the 27th June at The Monument. The Cape Town-based Breier said she was excited about returning to her home town Makhanda, after more than 40 years, since leaving in 1983 for the mother…
By Mbali Tanana With a career in media that champions storytelling, community development and access to information, media mogul Keith Ngesi says every step in his life’s journey has been preparing him for this moment. Ngesi, who is the founder and owner of media empire — Keith Ngesi Media — was born and bred in Makhanda. He says his recent appointment as a board member for the prestigious National Arts Festival will help him amplify his voice in promoting influence beyond Makhanda and inclusivity within the festival. “It was truly a full-circle moment for me. I was born and bred…
By Mbali Tanana Giving girls the edge was on top of the agenda at the South African Girls’ Schools Association conference, which saw more than 130 delegates from 58 independent and government-owned schools from across the country converge in Makhanda to share different methodologies to equip the girl child with resilience in and outside the classroom. This year, the conference host was the Diocesan School for Girls, which held the three-day event at the Amazwi South African Museum of Literature. DSG learning support and conference committee chair Sarah Chorley said it was important for the delegates to return to their…
By Mbali Tanana Frustrated matrics at Alicedale’s Hendrik Kanise Combined School were excited this week when they each received secure digital (SD) cards loaded with customised learning materials. The idea to deliver the cards to the matrics was cooked up in the Grocott’s Mail newsroom, following our extensive coverage of the recent five-week closure of the school. We partnered with Rhodes University Community Engagement (RUCE), which sponsored and sourced 27 SD cards for the project. The cards were then loaded with customised content by Grocott’s Mail contributors and Rhodes University fourth-year journalism students Mohale Manyama and Sinesipho Habana, who were…
By Mbali Tanana What was supposed to be a fun night out with her sister at a local tavern ended in tragedy for a 25-year-old Makhanda woman who was tricked out of the tavern by someone she knew, who ultimately raped her. The Tantyi resident says that speaking out and reporting the incident helped her heal and gave her some sense of peace. “Tormenting yourselves and suffering in silence is no way to live after being a victim of gender-based violence, nor is taking your own life. Trust the law to deal with your case and justice will be served,”…
By Mbali Tanana After several failed attempts to get the Makana Local Municipality to comply with regulatory bodies in their bid to investigate maladministration and corruption at the embattled institution, the Hawks, accompanied by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) successfully raided the municipal offices last Friday, following the recently approved proclamation by President Cyril Ramaphosa. Speaking to Grocott’s Mail during the raid, SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said their abrupt visit was the last resort. “The proclamation was gazetted about two weeks ago, but this process started a long time ago where we got people here complaining to us and giving…
By Mbali Tanana Troubled Makana Local Municipality has been identified as the only municipality in the Eastern Cape to receive a chunk of the R2bn conditional grant offered by the National Treasury to help capacitate embattled municipalities drowning in debt, to roll out smart meters as part of the Eskom debt relief programme. Local Government Budget Analysis director at National Treasury, Sadesh Ramjathan, responsible for the municipal Eskom debt and smart meter roll out project, said the grant, which should be utilised by the end of the national departments financial year, in February 2025, aims to help the municipality write…